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Tuesday, September 7, 2010

My Name is Erin, and I Have a Disobedient Dog

They say the first step is to admit you have a problem, right? I am usually pretty disciplined in most areas of my life, so to admit to the blog world (and all 3 of my readers haha), I feel silly for having a weird sense of broken pride and embarassment in admitting this. Sigh. But here it is: I have a problem, and her name is Sasha...

Anyone who knows me well, knows I love my dog. From the moment I brought home that bundle of fur, I was smitten. There have been enough posts along the way that highlight my obsession love for my dog. In the 3 years that I have had her, she has been my running buddy, my roommate, my protector, and a sweet presence to come home to every day.

But in the 3 years I have had her, we have developed some bad habits that have turned into behavior issues. As much as I love my dog, she's crazy. A few days ago, she had one of her worst days in which she had every behavioral issue she has ever had in a matter of 2 hours. I was so frustrated with her and at a point where I was even ready to find her another home. I readily admit my lack of discipline in certain areas of her behavior training, but have really reached the end of my knowledge on dog training. I don't believe that pets should be flippantly disposable, so I reached out to my friend Laura for help.

So Sasha is spending the week with Laura so that she can learn my dog's personality and figure out how to motivate her. The hope is to come away with some positive, tangible things to work on. Sasha is smart; she just can be too stubborn for her own good. Laura said a lot of her dismissive and carefree attitude is a result of her boxer traits...she said boxers are really difficult to train because they pretty much do their own thing (ummm...Sasha). So at least I know what I am up against...

The main issues that we plan to work on are:

Learning how to politely greet people when they come over

Learning how to occupy herself and leave company alone if they don't want to pet her (essentially learning that everything is not about her haha)

Breaking the habits of barking/whining when she just wants attention

Learning how to calm dawn when she gets into one of her "crazy" modes

Please understand that I am completely aware of the fact that owning a dog is a luxury. I recognize that my dog lives better than most of the world's human population. I have to constantly remind myself of this when I start to become too focused on/obssessed with her. The thought of ever having to give my sweet puppy away breaks my heart, but I recognize that she is just a dog. So I am really hoping that Laura can help us get back on track so that I can have a sweet, submissive puppy back :)